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Building new pc (2nd time ever)

Theo77

Posted 22 January 2012 - 10:46 PM

Theo77

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So I built my first PC about 5-6 years ago, and decided it was time to build a new one. I don't have a set budget but figure it will cost around $1500. It will be mostly for gaming, and I already have most of the parts in mind. However since it has been so long I wanted to run some of my ideas off the experts lol.

So I do have a couple concerns with the setup I currently have picked out. First one being that since this is a gaming rig, and I have not kept up-to-date on video cards, I'm a little unsure if this card will be enough, or if I should bump up a little and get one a little higher. Also dual monitors has always been a pipe dream, but now I have the means to actually afford it, I am unsure again if they will do ok with this mainly being a PC just for gaming. Also a little concerned that the video card might not handle dual monitors very well. I apologize if any of these have been covered before, or are just generally "noob" questions lol. I really look forward to hearing back, and appreciate in advance any advice or suggestions people have for this current setup.

I did not get links for any of the items due to this being copied directly from notepad, but I can provide links if needed.

Theo77

Posted 23 January 2012 - 08:55 AM

Theo77

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I have always used Nvidia cards, which is why I picked this one, and didn't even really look at an AMD card. I have seen a couple 3 monitor builds, and definitely love the look of it, and it may be something I try out next year but definitely cannot do it this year. So that brings up another question. If I do get the GTX and 2 monitors this year, next year could I SLI another GTX and add another monitor?

Also for the case, I actually had a few things I really wanted to get for this new case that I thought were upgrades from the current case I have. I really wanted the painted inside, a case that had good wire management capabilities, a case that had good air flow, and finally wanted to find one that had usb 3.0 on the front I/O. The Thor was actually one of the first ones I stumbled on that kinda met all the criteria and it looked ok from the outside so kinda just stuck with it. Would definitely be open to other suggestions.

As for the boot drive, any reason it should be bumped from 60 to 120? I initially hadn't even included the SSD into this system, but thought since a 60G wasn't too expensive I could put it in strictly as a boot drive.

Posted 23 January 2012 - 09:23 AM

iammykyl

Posted 23 January 2012 - 09:27 PM

On a side note, is there any real benefit from getting 3 monitors over 2?

The below site shows what dual or triple displays look like.

2 screens, image split down the middle. image is left and right.

3 screens, centre screen, centre of image, sides screens, left and right of image.

AS most action is in the centre of the screen, is easier to game on a triple display, but, with 3 x 24in screens = 6ft, that is a lot of real estate to watch, so something sneaky from the side can get you quick.&nbsp;

Theo77

Posted 23 January 2012 - 11:00 PM

Theo77

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I was under the assumption that not many games actually utilize dual monitors, and for the most part I would have 1 monitor for gaming and the other would be for a media player/internet or what ever. But yeah I can see how if a game will let you use all 3 that would be pretty cool.

iammykyl

Posted 24 January 2012 - 01:06 AM

. If I do get the GTX and 2 monitors this year, next year could I SLI another GTX and add another monitor?

Unless there is something new out there, no, The cards work in tandem with one being a slave passing information to the master which, connected to the display, passes the information along.

I think, (anybody?) you can have 2 separate cards but cannot span over more than 2 screens.

If you want a second card later, you will need to ensure the PSU is selected with that in mind. There is also an issue with SLI and Crossfire, jitter or stutter, this article is very long. http://techreport.com/articles.x/21516

Asked about the

Rosewill case as I had not come across it before, gets excellent reviews, would be very interested in what you think of it"s performance. My choices would be $50 more.

I suppose going for a larger SSD is fairly personal. I do think 60GB is ok for a fast boot drive but 120GB more usable.

Anne has a very messy 120Gb SSD with lots of rubbish installed, hasn't slowed down, still plenty of room left, very usable as a desktop HDD.In benchmarks almost every instance a larger SSD is faster as it can spread the throughput over more chips.

Theo77

Posted 24 January 2012 - 10:53 AM

Theo77

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I really appreciate the help. I am at work right now on my phone so I am unable to read the articles you posted but I will read them tonight. Again I really appreciate the time and effort you put in to helping a stranger over the Internet build his dream gaming rig lol

Theo77

Posted 24 January 2012 - 02:08 PM

Theo77

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Still haven't had a chance to check articles, but did have a quick question regarding the graphics card. I really love the one you suggested, even more so that it comes with BF3 and that alone will save me $60, but lately on other boards I have seen other GTX 560 TI 1g cards anywhere from $229, all the way down to $199. I dont think the other cards had the 448 cores and was wondering how much that would really help.

I had about $300 listed for a card, and don't mind spending that, I just want to make sure I get the best one in that price range.

iammykyl

Posted 27 January 2012 - 03:58 AM

iammykyl

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even more so that it comes with BF3

Not according to the article below, seems it is a marketing ploy.

but lately on other boards I have seen other GTX 560 TI 1g cards anywhere from $229, all the way down to $199. I dont think the other cards had the 448 cores and was wondering how much that would really help.

Lowest price without 448 cores. More explanations in the same article.